mandag 5. januar 2009

Home, sweet home

And home is where your heart lies. Luckily a part of my heart lies in Kigali, and though I've had a great time in Uganda and Tanzania, it feels good to be back home. It is like a different world here, maybe because my relation to Rwanda is based on the every day life, while I've been a tourist every other place I've visited. But I love Rwanda, and I'm glad I still have four months left. Starting 2009 with a lifted spirit.

I left Kigali 12 Dec., not in the bus we had booked seats in, but in a small Toyota Hiace. The reason is our taxi never showed up, and when we finally got to the bus station we were ten minutes too late. You would maybe not believe this to be possible in Africa, but in Rwanda the bus leaves at six sharp. Hanne will always refer to the next couple of hours as the time she sat in a Toyota Hiace squeezed between my over sized suitcase and two blind Rwandan men, but I think only one of the men were actually blind.

On the Ugandan side of the border we were met by our teacher, and he took us on an unforgettable trip. After a long car ride through some beautiful Ugandan nature (unfortunately only populated by goats and cows), we ended up in a UNCHR refugee camp. It looked clean enough, but the Congolese refugees cannot be said to have had the greatest Christmas.

I spent six days in Jinja, Uganda, with two teachers and 13 other students. We did some school related things, but most of all we took the opportunity to have fun together. This resulted in a whole days bike ride through some villages near Jinja, which everyone became completely covered in red dust of, and bungee jumping over the Nile. If you've never tried it, you don't know how crazy it feels throwing yourself off a high tower that will eventually give you a free fall of 44 meters. But oh how great it feels when you first jump.

20 Dec. I and Hanne took the plane from Kampala via Nairobi to Zanzibar. When we arrived at the bungalows in Jambiani Village it was late, and no power, leaving the village with a ghostly look. The next day the place showed it real self, and it was not so bad at all. Living on the beach inside as well as outside our bungalow and taking showers in salt water was the only hitch there was. We got to test our patience, as it took about 1,5 to 2 hrs from we ordered till the food was served for both lunch and dinner. In the end bringing playing cards was as natural as bringing money. Christmas and New Year's was celebrated on the beach, a first for me, but in good company anything goes.

I wish you all a very happy new year 2009, and thanks to everyone who made December a great month to be in Africa:)

Linn Silje<3

4 kommentarer:

Anonym sa...

Fint å lese at du trives der sør. Jula har vært hvit her nord og det har blitt både mye mat, god mat, ski- og sparkturer sammen med hundene. Nå har hverdagen tatt os igjen med jobb og fastere rutiner. Innebandy i går, 2 volleyballkamper i morgen så du ser inspirasjon fra deres fitness-senter gir ringvirkninger......

Anonym sa...

J'aime bien suivre tes nouvelles, tu écris bien. Je m'ennuie de toi, et j'espère que tu vas bientôt recevoir ton cadeau! Ah, j'ai tellement le goût de te parler pour de vrai!
Papillon.

Anonym sa...

Nå har jeg fått studert sidene dine og synes dette ser veldig spennende ut. Bloggen var vel ikke det letteste å finne ut av.. itjnåkka nærd æ nei
Ble litt kjapp den første kommentaren min.
Utrolig morro å oppleve den store kulturkollisjonen som det må være å komme dit ned....? Må innrømme at jeg er litt misunnelig :-) Ser ut som dere har det arti og hårvask er vel egentlig oppskrytt..
Lars Erling

Anonym sa...

der fant jeg deg.... kuult.... håper du har det bra.

hilsen "nabo'n"
Lars Erling